A SENIOR PSNI OFFICER has said that the UVF were involved in the second night of rioting in Newtownabbey last night.
Last night’s disturbances follow Monday’s riots at the mainly loyalist Rathcoole estate in which at least six cars and a bus were burnt out, the Belfast Telegraph reports.
Damage caused in Monday’s riots was put at an estimated £200,000 (over €229,000).
The BBC reports that the riots followed earlier police raids in the area, which were conducted as part of an ongoing investigation into murders and crimes allegedly committed by the UVF.
The PSNI rejected claims officers had been heavy-handed during the searches.
Last night, a female bus driver was pulled from her vehicle before it was set alight, the BBC reports. The woman’s bus was not equipped with a radio and she did not know she should avoid the Rathcoole area.
A similar incident occurred on Monday night, as a male bus driver was dragged from his bus. Unlike the female driver, he was beaten and sustained serious facial injuries.
A spokesperson for the Unite union, which represents bus drivers, told UTV that children as young as 14 were involved in last night’s riots. This UTV report shows the bus in flames:
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